#predawn | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

springfallendeer · 4 months

Text

Predawn 001

Just a silly little thing I wrote, featuring a lesser-used AU of mine ("Predawn", aka, space dinosaur AU). Briefly features @pulsarsatellite's Aberrant, who I adore.

Written largely in the style of a nature documentary.

The sun shines brightly in the morning sky, breathing the first breaths of life into the icy landscape.

Spring has only just made its return following a particularly harsh and unforgiving winter. While it has finally started to get warmer, winter has given the landscape one last cold front with its dying breath.

The freshly fallen snow brilliantly glitters as the light dances across it. By midday, it will be gone and the fresh spring grass will emerge. But for now, the snow is here. Cold, crisp, and white.

It masks the smell of nearby predators, while easily giving away the location of the local herbivore herds.

Centrosaurus. These three ton Pre-Dawn ceratopsians are relatives of the Dre-Dawn Triceratops, after which this family alien of dinosaurs is named. They are easily distinguished from others of their family tree by the look of their bony frill.

The outer edge of the crest is lined with many small horns, which wear down from vigorous use as the animal ages. Four larger, but still relatively small, hooked horns grow around the apex of the arch. One set rests on the edge of the crest, whereas the other can be found beneath them. These horns line up with the eye, and curve inward towards it; with the innermost set curling so far downwards that they can sometimes go on to pierce the frill itself. On the males, there exists an extra set of horns that grow just above each eye. These additional horns are used for combat; particularly to puncture or gouge out the eyes of their opponents.

The herd has gathered here in search of food. They use the long horn on the end of their noses to disrupt the hardened sheet of snow. Once the ice it broken, they then bow their heads further to then scrape the remaining snow away using the bony protrusions on the sides of their frills.

When the snow is removed, slumbering blades of grass can be found underneath. This is exactly what the herd is after. They go about their business seemingly without care, as if blissfully unaware of how their every move gives away their location.

Every action of the grazers disrupts the dense ice. With each footstep there comes an audible crackle as the frozen layer cracks and gives way beneath their immense weight. Likewise, the ground crunches as the hungry creatures scrape the ice away in search of tender foliage.

Just one of these bulky herbivores would create a ruckus with its early morning foraging. But a whole herd, numbering nearly a hundred, creates a chorus.

That chorus in turn acts as a sirens song. The sound is completely irresistible to any predators who might be looking for a meal.

Unfortunately for the herd, there are multiple predators in the area; and due to the harsh circumstances of the previous winter, not one of them is willing to pass up the opportunity to obtain a meal.

A trio of Pre-Dawn Albertosaurus; likely a family. This species is a smaller relative of the planets Tyrannosaur. Both of which drastically differ from their extinct Earth counterparts, despite their many similarities.

These alien theropods are currently blanketed in a thick layer of downy winter feathers. These feathers primarily exist to insulate the animal in order to fend off the bitter chill of winter; but thanks to their largely white coloration, they also double as camouflage.

This last blanket of snow has given them the perfect opportunity to make one last cold-weather hunt, before the changing of the seasons sends them into an awkward transition to their summer colors. This will likely be the last time that camouflage is fully on their side for the next few weeks. They cannot allow this opportunity to slip away from them.

The carnivorous beasts move silently, in comparison to the noise created by the herbivore herd. Their camouflage makes them near indistinguishable from the surrounding snow, when standing still. To make use of this, the predators move at a snails pace while hunting in the snow. At least right up until the last possible moment.

Thanks to the cold air and the lack of a morning breeze, their scent goes unnoticed by the oblivious herd.

The same cannot be said about the Albertosaurs, whose nasal ridges are still engorged by stores of seasonal fat. These fat stores will disappear over the course of the next few weeks as the air is warmed up by spring. When this happens, the familiar pronounced brow-ridge of the Albertosaurus will return. But for now, their nasal ridge remains pronounced. Which means they will serve their intended purpose; which is to heat the frozen air as the theropod breathes.

Warm air carries scents better. It also stings the lungs less during times of strenuous activity, such as hunting. This is but another adaptation unique to the Albertosaurus of Pre-Dawn.

The scent of the nearby Centrosaurs appears to be mouthwatering. The Albertosaur family; particularly their young daughter; cannot help but drool at the prospect of a future meal.

The youngster shows great control by remaining alongside her parents as they creep towards their intended prey. Likely because she has learned throughout the winter that there are consequences to breaking formation early. Her sunken ribs and the sunken ribs of her family can be spotted even through their dense layer of down. This establishes that the lesson has likely been learned the hard way throughout the cold season.

She is doing well to learn from her mistakes. She might not be able to survive if she costs her family another meal.

By a stroke of sheer luck, the family manages to creep up just behind the Centrosaurus at the very back of the herd. The old doe is so engrossed in her foraging behavior that she still has not taken notice of the trio of predators that have come up from behind.

Her larger size and her prominent frill have put her at a disadvantage. Ceratopsians have a limited range of rear-facing vision at the best of times thanks to their prominent frills and their stocky bodies. They largely rely upon scent and sound in order to take notice of a predator before it can attack.

Thanks to the snow and the high activity of her herd-mates, she cannot see, smell, or even hear the Albertosaurs as they creep up from behind her. Not until the flailing of her head as she scrapes away the snow allows the predators to come within the range of her periphery.

Her reaction time is on point. She lets out a shrill alarm call to get the herd moving and charges forward the instant that she takes notice of the predators.

But unfortunately for her, the Albertosaur family is far too close and her herd does not disperse fast enough. She doesn’t have the room to go forward, and she barely has the room to turn and fight. She’s barely gotten herself sideways by the time the predators charge forward to sink their teeth into her hide.

Against one of these malnourished Albertosaurs, she might have had a fighting chance to get away once caught. She would have escaped with painful wounds, and she might have developed an infection, but she would have escaped. But against a trio of Albertosaurs, capable of biting her from multiple angles at once? She never stood a chance. The instant that that first bite was landed, her fate was sealed.

The youngster and her mother sink their teeth into rump of their captured prey to prevent it from escaping as the startled herd flees. Their grasp also prevents the struggling Centrosaurus from being able to charge as the male steps in to land the most important blow.

With his prey restrained and unable to charge him, the male steps around to lock his jaws around the back of the herbivores neck. With his head tucked safely away behind that elaborate frill and his jaws locked, he is relatively safe from harm.

The dramatic head flailing of the Centrosaurus might jostle him a bit, and the edge of the crest itself might slam into the side of his chest, but he will otherwise be fine. It is the horns and the powerful maw of the Centrosaurus that he needs to be the most wary of, and so long as he is behind that crest, neither of those dangers can do him any harm. His job is to hold the Centrosaur down while his mate and offspring tear into its hindquarters.

The herbivore will fight up until its dying breath. The trio must wear it out quickly before they can feed. Keeping it locked in place while they rip it open will be the most effective way to bring it into shock.

It is now a battle of endurance where the predators try to wear down the prey’s stamina before their prey can overwhelm them and break free.

The old doe is nearly as heavy as the three of them combined. She pushes forward with her legs, slowly dragging the male as he struggles to keep his jaws locked around her neck. All the while the female Albertosaurs tear into her hindquarters with sharp teeth and hooked claws.

Splotches of disturbed snow become stained with the Centrosaur’s blood as she fights valiantly to free herself. The combined heat of her blood, the three Albertosaurs, and the morning sun all work together to quickly thaw the snow where they stand.

As a result, the ground beneath them quickly grows soft and unreasonably slippery. Icy mud is kicked up as the four dinosaurs struggle through their fight. The predators in particular struggle to maintain their balance in such slippery terrain, and so the flailing of the frantic herbivore does eventually work as intended.

The old doe breaks free! A valiant effort on her part, but this success comes far too late. Heavily wounded and steadily bleeding out from her many brutal injuries, she stands no chance at walking away from this confrontation with her life. The Albertosaurs give her a wide berth as she turns to confront them, rightly wary of the harm that she could do to them with her massive nasal horn.

But despite their wariness, they do not allow her time to rest. They encircle her exhausted frame and take turns creeping him to nip at her haunches, slowly wearing her out further. All three are eager to begin their meal. They need only wait for the shock to set in and for her to succumb to her exhaustion.

Thankfully, it does not take long. The old doe inevitably collapses from exhaustion after being harassed by the predators for a while longer. Once her back end loses the ability to stand, the Albertosaurs close in to begin their meal. All of them equally exhausted, but no doubt relieved at having secured themselves this bounty of fresh meat.

=========================================

“Good job on the editing.” Aberrant hums as he finishes observing what is hopefully the final draft of their most recent documentary.

“Great job capturing all of those shots. I can’t believe how much footage you gave me to work with.” Ayala replies.

“Particularly with that fight! You could see the Albertosaur digging his teeth into the back of that Centrosaur’s neck! That was an unbelievable shot.” She adds, giving her fingers a few satisfactory pops as she does. This is her usual way of signaling that she is now done with her work for the day. All that remains now is to send this most recent draft to the higher ups in order for it to be approved for public broadcasting. Hopefully no further edits will be requested.

“Oh yeah. I had to get real up close and personal to get all that footage~ I nearly got eaten.” The animatronic responds in turn, naturally making a joke. All of the footage had been captured via remotely controlled drones, all of which were under his control. At no point was his personal safety ever at risk. Though they did admittedly lose a couple of poorly placed drones when the herd charged and while the predators were fighting to bring down their prey. But such were the risks of the nature crew.

“Did you now~?” The woman chuckles, amusement obvious in her voice as she addresses the machine.

“I suppose I’ll have to give you a lookover, then. Can’t have you keeling over on me in the middle of gathering footage.” She muses, reaching up and playfully putting her hand over the animatronic’s face to jostle it as she speaks. She then lets out a little squeak and a giggle as Aberrant responds to her antics by sticking his tongue out and licking her palm.

“Make sure to be thorough~” He chuckles in turn, grabbing the woman’s arm before she can fully retract it. He then places an affectionate kiss on her knuckles while maintaining eye contact, just to be sweet.

“Then you’d best get to the bed and get ready~” Ayala hums, smiling up at the animatronic. She then rises onto her toes to meet him in a kiss as he leans down. He then ruffles her hair before scampering off; likely to the bedroom. She’ll meet him there once she’s turned in their work for the day. After which point, who can say what they’ll actually get up too.

Probably something silly, knowing Aberrant. Something silly that will somehow still lead to him getting in her pants, after he’s nearly made her faint from laughter. Either way, she’s looking forward to it. Their little games are just another part of what makes this job so exciting.

#Predawn #Predawn AU #001

5 notes · View notes